Concrete floor construction



H L.' WELLS CONCRETE FLOOR CONSTRUCTION Oct. 18, 1932.

Filed Nov. 19, 1929 2 Sheets-Sheet l Oct. 18, 1932. H. WELLS 2 CONCRETEFLOOR CONSTRUCTION Filed Nov. 19. 1929 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Patented Oct.18, 1932 HEWITT L. WELLS, OF WASHINGTON; DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA CONCRETEFLOOR CONSTRUCTION Application filed November 19, 1929. Serial 'No.408,342.

This invention relates to an improvement In concrete floor construction,and particularly to the method of erecting and removing the temporaryforms. '5; here are many systems of floor construction on the marketwhich meet the requirements more or lesssatisfactorily. The mostcommonly used system of concrete floor construction, consists in aframework of structural steel members, fire proofed with concrete andshort-span solid concrete slabs supported by the beams. In a typicallayout of this floor system, the beams frame into gird. ers at the thirdpoint and the girders in turn are carried by the supporting columns.This system has been extensively used primarily on account of its lowcost and light deadweight. In the construction of floors of thischaracter it is the custom to use forms made .of wood'to castthe'concrete slabs and beams. These Wood forms are one ofthe largestitems of expense due to' the waste of the material when removed afterthe setting of the concrete. A considerable proportion of the lumber'isunsuitable for reuse in construct ing further form work for remainingfloors or in the erection of floors in other buildings. Furthermore,there is the great expense entailed in the employment of labor in theerection of these wood forms. The salvage value of wood forms has beenfound to be very low even when the form sections are carefully removed.When stripped from hardened concrete the pieces bind and are partlydamaged, distorted and full of nails, therefore the expense in sortingand preparing the lumber for further usein erecting forms is almost asgreat as the cost of new material. An object of the present invention isto overcome these objections and to provide means for the erection offloors more economically by providing beam forms ofsteel arranged on'opposite sides of the structural steel beams supported beneath byfalsework such as'stringers or T-heads. Arranged between the adjacentsteel beam forms and supported thereby are wood joists suitably spacedapart, and supported on these wood joists are flat steel forms or woodsheathing which lie in the same plane with the tops or upper surfaces ofthe steel beam forms, and upon which the concrete is poured. In pouringthe concrete upon'these flat forms or sheathing and between the steelbeam forms located on opposite sides of structural steel beams, thesteel frame is embedded and thoroughly encased in the concrete includingthe bottom flanges, and therefore adequately fire proofed.

Another object of this invention is to employ these structural beamforms in connec-' tion with the flat steel forms or wooden sheathing inthe construction of reinforced concrete floors and beams. In this formof construction the beam forms are supported on T-heads 25 of temporaryshores or props instead of suspending the form work from the structuralsteel beams which in this'instance would be omitted.

The steel beam forms are made extensible by permitting of an overlapbetween the ad jacent or adjoining ends so that they can be adjustedwith respect to the length ofthe span between the girders. These steelforms. by arranging them adjacent to the vertical sides of the steelbeams eliminates much of the usual fabrication and framing customarywith Wooden form work. After the concrete has set, the stringer orT-heads 25, whichever may be employed, can be released and the steelforms removed as well as the flat steel forms or, sheathing and may beagain reassembled on upper floors; Forms manufactured of steel sheetscan be used over a long period of time. The maintenance cost is low andtheir use greatly lessens the cost and eliminates the waste so prevalentwith wooden form work.

The invention consists of certain other novel features of constructionand combination of parts which will be hereafter described and pointedout in the claims.

In the accompanying drawin s:

Figure 1 is a vertical longitudinal sectional view through a typicalfloor slab showing the supporting girders; a

Figure 2 is a vertical cross-sectional view on the line 2-2 of Figure 1;V a j Figure 3' is a detail perspective view in the top cross-section ofthe invention as illustrated in Figures 1 and 2;

Figure 4 is a detail perspective view of the metal beam forms arrangedin overlapped relation;

Figure 5 is a transverse vertical sectional view similar to Figure 2 ofa slightly modifled arrangement; and

Figure 6 is a detail sectional view showing filler blocks supported bythe beam forms for elevating the soflit boardsr Referring to Fig. 1, thegirders 10, 10 sup- I thereinto the spaced 11 which are port and haveframed apart structural steel beams 11, riveted thereto.

The procedure in the method of construction consists first in theerection of the structural steel frame, Figs. '1, 2 and '3. From thesteel beams 11 are suspended wood stringers 12, 12 from hangers 13, 13.These stringers 12 are suspendeda distance below the bot-tom flange ofthe steel beams 11 to allow the plac ing of the soflit boards 14, 14 inspaced relation with respect to the bottom flanges of the steel beams.

. Arranged along both sides of each of the steel beams 11 are the steelbeam forms '15, 1 5. These steel beam forms 15 are'construc'ted somewhatin the shape of an inverted U or channel, one side 17 of whichhasanoutwardly turned flange 18 at its base which projects beneath theso'lfit board 14 and is supported on the stringer 12while the oppositeside 19 is of less depth and extends afixed distance from or upperportion 16 of the form. It isprovided with an outwardly turned flange20., The sides 17 With their flanges 18 of the two beam forms 15 arearranged on opposite sides of the steel beams 11 and form ajsupport forthe; outer longitudinal edges of the soflit ar y The beam forms areheld; in upright position upon the stringers 12 by means of bucks 21, 21which are short wooden blocks secured to the stringers 12 by nailsor'other suitable fastening; The upper ends of these bucks 21 are incontact with the underside of the horizontal surface 16 of the steelbeam forms 15 and transfer the loadof the slab directly to the stringers12 which in turn are hung or 7 supported by the wire hangers 13 carriedby the steel beams 11. V

. Interposed between the spaced apart steel beams 11 and forms 15 arewooden joists 23 which are supported on the flanges 20 of the sides 19of the st'eelforms 1,5. These joists 23 are spaced at suitablefdistanceapart along the beam form flanges 20 andare of a size suitable forsupporting thereupon, as-illustrated inFigs. 2'and 3, the flat metalforms 24, 24 or woodd'eck forms 26 Fig. 5.. These flat metal forms 24are arranged with respect to each other upon the wood joists -23'to fillthe space intervening between the adj acent'beam forms lightweight steelReference is made to Patents Nos. 1,445,37 4, issued February 15,1923and 1,533,960, issued April 14, 1925, covering the design of steel forms24, used to cast the concrete floor slabs, as illustrated in Fig. 3.

It is to be noted as indicated in Figs. 2 and 5 that-the depth of thesides 19 is sufficient to receive these wood joists so that the topsurfaces of the metal forms 24 or wood sheathing 26 will be in the sameplane with the upper surface of the beam forms 15. I

These steel beam forms 15 are illustrated as being approximately of aheight equal to the height of the steel beams 11 herein disclosed.However, the side 17 extends below the flanges of the steel beams 11,the purpose being to form a support with a flange 18 for a sofiit board14. ,The height of the beam forms 15 varies 'to suit the depth ofthebeam stem. To eliminate the necessity of employing a number ofvarious depths of steel beam forms required for construction work ofthis character for the various sizesof steel beams, the steel beam formsof the depth shown may be uti lized,as; the side 17 can be made to suita group of various lesser depth beams by filling in between the soflitboard 24 and the flange 18 of the sides 17 with blocks 28. The blocks sointerposed between the flanges 18 of the adjacent forms 15 and sofiitboards 24 support and elevate the latter in its correct position inrelation to the bottom flange of the beam 11. v Thesebeam forms 15 maybeconstru'cted of sheets which may be easily handled, arranged andsupported along. the sides of the beams. They are-capable of adjustmentwi 11 respect to each other, and can be assembled in numbers tosuit anylength of span. The short side 19 affords with its flange 20 thenecessary support for the wood joists and the flat metal forms .orsheathing which is employed to 'form the .slab in the space interveningbetween the beams. It is to be understood as illustrated in Fig. 4, thatthese beam forms 15 are somanufactured that they may overlap. One end ofeach form being of a slightly smaller width than, the opp'ositeend topermit the forms to overlap whereby a series may be arranged withrespect to each other to extend the full length of the steel beams. Thisoverlapping feature. is also possible with flat forms 24 so that theymay be set upon the Wood joists 23 and arranged thereon to suit anylength required. The steel beainforms 15 may be made in various standardlengths so that with the assembling of several of these forms they canbe adapted to the length or'space between the supporting girders 10.

In Fig.5, the steel forms 15 are arranged in the same spaced relation,as illustrated in Figs.'2 and 3 with respect-to the joists 11; but in'this'arrangeinent the steel beam forms, and framework are positionedfor the pouring of reenforced concrete beams and floor slabs. The steelforms 15 are supported by T-heads 25, instead of the stringers 12, andthe bucks 21 are attached to the T-heads 25 for aifordin the necessarysupport for the beam forms. lwounted upon the wood joists 23 issheathing 26, 26 instead of the metal forms 24, thus illustrating thatwooden sheathing may also be employed between the beams to form theslab. As is illustrated in this figure,

the distance between the beams may be greater than that illustrated inFigs. 2 and 3 for structural steel framing. When this distance is ofconsiderable length additional supports such as 27 may be used to givethe necessary rigidity to the wood'joists 23 and the flat metal forms 24or wooden sheathing 26 that may be employed in the construction of thefloors.

After the concrete has set a suflicient length of time, and it isdesired to remove the forms and supporting false work for reuse on otherfloors or in other buildings the wire. hangers are cut or the T-headstaken from under the concrete beams which releases the balance of theform work. In the removal of these steel form units and supporting falseWork from the formed concrete construction there is little damage orloss of material such 30 as in wood form construction.

It is believed to be perfectly evident from the foregoing that with thissystem applied both to structural steel frame and reenforced concreteconstruction the form work can be erected and removed more readily, withless waste and less material than under the present method ofconstruction in general use, and

V with a great saving in labor and material.

Having described my invention what I claim as new and desire to secureby Letters Patent is: V

1. Means for forming a concrete floor, comprising a metal formconstructed from a metal plate by bending to form a top and sides bentdownwardly from the top, the sides being of different depths, one sideforming the wall of a mold, and the side of lesser depth being bent atits lower edge to form a seat to support a system of slabv forms, asupporting means interposed between the sides of the metal form andengaging the top thereof for maintaining the metal form in position.

2. Means for forming a concrete floor, comprising a metal formconstructed from a metal plate by bending to form a top and sidesextending downwardly from the top, one side forming the wall of a mold,and the other side provided with a seat .to support asystern of slabforms, a supporting means interposed between the sides of the metal formand engaging the top thereof for maintaining the metal form in position.

65 HEWITT L. WELLS.

